Flames Rising
by Skypaw298
Summary: The great-grandson of Badgerstar has been prophesied to be a great leader, with the power of fire in his paws. Will he use this power for good or for evil? Will he ever find out his true heritage? Read and find out! Rated T just in case...
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

It was a moonless night. Only stars shone brightly in the sky. Grey soft clouds scudded across the black sky. A lone owl hooted in the distance, getting ready to take off for his nightly flight. The forest began to come alive with the sounds and rustles of nocturnal creatures.

It was a perfect night for secrets.

Two black figures crept through the undergrowth, taking care to stay hidden from sight. They were soon in coming to a forest of pines, and one parted from the other with a quiet good-bye. The cat went on into the forest, a bundle of fur clamped in its jaws, the other watching somberly as its partner disappeared from view.

"Shadefeather," came a mew.

The black she-cat flinched and turned around to face the direction the voice was coming from. "B-Badgerstar," she gasped as she saw the starry ex-leader of ForestClan. "Wh-what are you doing here?"

"My granddaughter, I am worried about your choices," the grey and black tom calmly mewed, staring at the she-cat sternly. "Tanglefire was a good choice in mate, however bad your choice of mating with an enemy Clancat."

Shadefeather hung her head in shame. "I'm sorry..." she whispered. "I didn't mean to break the warrior code... It's just... I love him." She lifted her head to stare levelly at her dead grandfather. "And I made a good choice in giving him to Tanglefire to join ShadowClan, right? Now I can become the rightful deputy in place of Cedarwing."

Badgerstar nodded. "Yes, a good choice indeed. You are destined to be a great leader, and will lead your Clan through many hardships. Cedarwing's path was destined to be full of carnage and loss had he become leader. But, stay loyal to ForestClan, and know where your heart lies. I expect more from you, granddaughter."

"Yes, Badgerstar. I will do my best." The she-cat dipped her head respectfully, and Badgerstar started to fade.

"Good-bye, Shadefeather, I shall watch over you and your kit." He was gone.

Shadefeather sat for several more heartbeats, thinking about her meeting with her long-dead grandfather and turned around to head back to camp.

"Owltalon."

No response.

"Owltalon! Wake up!"

"Hnnh...?" the speckled brown cat groaned, stretching out his legs. "Hhhhwhat do you want now, Badgerstar...?"

"I need to talk to you," replied the black-masked leader.

"What about?" Owltalon had gotten up and was now grooming his matted fur. "I just started to doze off when you woke me up," he grumbled.

"You've been sleeping half the day," Badgerstar muttered and rolled his eyes. "Anyway, I just talked to Shadefeather."

"Oh? Still watching out for your children, huh?"

"Whatever. Last night, she gave Tanglefire the kit to bring back to ShadowClan." Badgerstar's eyes widened. "Do you know what that means?"

Owltalon's eyes widened too. "What?"

"It's fitting with the prophecy!" he exclaimed.

Owltalon gave him a confused look. "What prophecy?" he moaned. "You and your prophecies!"

Badgerstar raked the ground with his claws in frustration. "_When all turns dark, __look to the light of the half-Clan cat who holds the power of flame in his paws!_"

The brown tom snorted. "Yeah, I think you're just going kerbonkers, there is no way that prophecy is even true. Besides, Thistleleaf would've known about it! She is like the best medicine cat ever."

Badgerstar sniffed. "It is too true," he whined.

"Not listening," Owltalon said in a sing-song voice.

Badgerstar huffed and walked away. 'I know who will believe me,' he thought angrily.

A little while later, the dark leader reached a cave. He took a tentative step in, and immediately the scent of herbs and flowers wreathed around him. "Willowsong?" he called out.

"Here," came a muffled voice from the back of the den.

Badgerstar sighed in relief and walked to the back where the stench of herbs was the strongest.

"What do you need?" the pretty gray she-cat asked, turning to her former leader with bright blue eyes.

"I just wanted to talk to you," he began.

"About the prophecy?" she guessed, turning a leaf over and sniffing at it.

Badgerstar stared at her in shock. "You know...about the prophecy?" he gasped.

Willowsong gave him a look. "Of course, silly furball," she teased. "I'm a medicine cat, remember?"

"B-but... what about Thistleleaf? Does she know about it?"

"Yes. Yes, she does."

"Why didn't you tell me then? It does concern my kin, you know!" Badgerstar growled.

Willowsong put down what she was doing and turned to him. "We thought it best not to. But then obviously it slipped somehow, and that's how you know about it."

Badgerstar shook his head. "It was supposed to be a secret? But...that's wrong! Starclan shouldn't be full of secrets..."

Willowsong gave a sad sigh. "Well, we all have our secrets..." she murmured. "StarClan, most of all... Not everything is for every cat's ears."

Badgerstar frowned. "So you're keeping it secret from not just me?"

The medicine cat nodded. "Only the medicine cats know of it. Everyone else is oblivious."

The darkish leader mulled that over. "Well, what about it is so secretive?" he finally asked.

"We're not entirely sure who it's all about, to tell you the truth," the she-cat admitted. "All we know about it is that it's a half-Clan cat."

Badgerstar hung his head. "Is that all you can tell me?" he muttered.

"Yes, I'm sorry," mewed Willowsong honestly.

Badgerstar gave a bitter half-smile and turned to go back to the entrance. "Well, thanks," he meowed. "I better go now."

Willowsong waved her tail in response. "See you later, Badgerstar," she replied and turned back to her herbs.

Badgerstar left the den. He gazed somberly up at the dark midnight sky. 'Oh, StarClan. Life after death can be really stressful...'


	2. Chapter 1: Don't Go, Papa

**Chapter 1**

"Hey, watch it, Branchkit! That's my tail you're yanking on!"

"Sorry, it just looks so tantalizing! I wanna eat it!"

"Ow, cut it out!"

"Kits, settle down, now!"

_Thump, thump, thump._

"Yes, Mama!"

Heatkit tilted his ears slightly as he followed the progress of his fellow littermates' squeakings. His eyes weren't open yet, but he was planning on opening them soon, so he could go play too. The thing was, he just didn't feel ready yet. But when he did, that's when he would open them.

_Thump, thump!_

"Hey, Mama?"

"Yes, Lizardkit."

"When will Heatkit open his eyes? He just lies there all limp, his ears twitching like crazy!"

"I'm sure he will when he feels ready."

Heatkit suddenly felt a painful crash, and it felt like Lizardkit had jumped on him. She sat on top of his shoulder, and bent her head into his ear. Her whiskers tickled the inside of his ear and he squirmed to get her off. "Heatkit!" she shouted. "Open your eyes! Or I'm gonna thrash ya!"

"No..." he whimpered, snarling pitifully.

Lizardkit laughed, the sound coming out in wheezing snorts. "You're so weak," she giggled. The she-kit bounced up and down on the tiny tom, crushing his ribs and lungs until he couldn't breathe.

"Lizardkit! Get off of him!"

Suddenly the weight was lifted and Heatkit could breathe again. "Thank you, Mama," he rasped.

But his mother didn't pay any attention to him. Instead she went back to talking to the other two kits. "Now you two, go outside and play, alright? I'm gonna take a nap, and I don't need you disturbing me."

Heatkit felt dejected. Nightbird had only ordered Lizardkit off of him so she could go out and play. Then again, his mother only paid attention to his other two littermates and only paid attention to him when she had to. He didn't know why. Was he too small? Too weak? Not handsome enough? The tiny kit thought for a while before finally drifting off to sleep.

When he woke up again, it was past sun-high. He wasn't sure whether Branchkit or Lizardkit had come back inside yet, since it was unusually quiet, but he knew that he was ready. 'Ready or not, here I come...' Slowly, slowly, his eyelids opened, until his eyes were wide. He looked around him. Everything seemed so big and intimidating... He looked up at the big black fuzz next to him, and Nightbird turned her head around to look down at him. Her ice-blue eyes flashed.

"Oh, you're awake," she purred. "And your eyes are open too!"

Heatkit nodded uncertainly. "Are you my mother? You smell like her."

The big she-cat's eyes narrowed slightly. "Yes, I am," she whispered softly.

Heatkit buried his nose into her fur. "Everything is so big..." he whispered too.

Nightbird licked the top of his head. "You'll get used to it," she murmured. "and you'll grow big too."

The black kit nodded, and stumbled to his feet. "I'm gonna take a look around," he announced, fluffing out his fur. He tottered forward a few steps and tripped to the ground in front of another big cat that was at the back of the den. "Wh-who are you?" he asked the cat in fright.

The she-cat lifted her head and looked down at him. "I'm another queen, my name is Snowflight." Her lustrous white fur looked glossy and well-groomed.

Heatkit dipped his head. "Nice to meet you, I'm Heatkit." He crept closer to the queen's bulging belly. "Why are you so big? Did you eat a lot?"

The queen purred in amusement. "No, I'm pregnant," she told him. "That means kits just like you are growing inside me."

Heatkit gazed up at her in wonder. "Wow," he said. Then he scampered to the other corner of the den and poked at a ball of moss. "What is this?" he asked, looking at Snowflight and Nightbird. They were both watching him, their whiskers twitching.

"That's a moss-ball. Your siblings were playing with that earlier," Nightbird meowed.

Heatkit's eyes shone as he batted gently at it with his claws sheathed. "That's cool," he observed.

The kit turned away from the ball and gazed up at the ceiling of the den. It was so high up, he had to sit back on his haunches to see the very top. "It's sooo high up there!" he mewed. "How can you reach up so high? I'll bet I would have to grow a lot if I could ever reach up there."

Nightbird chuckled, and then her gaze shifted to the den entrance. "Oh, Heatkit, you have company," she meowed, right before a large black tom strode in. "Hello, Tanglefire," Nightbird greeted him.

Tanglefire dipped his head to her, and stepped forward. He lowered his head and stared at the kit.

Heatkit stepped back, and sniffed cautiously at the tom. He smelled similar to himself, but he wasn't sure who he was.

"Son," purred the tom. "How good to see your eyes have opened.

Heatkit stared at the tom. "Are you my dad?" he whispered.

Tanglefire sat up straight and regarded his son from up high. "Yes, and I have wanted to meet you so much, Heatkit."

The kit smiled warily and rubbed his body against his father's legs. "Nice to meet you, dad," he purred.

Tanglefire smiled and laughed. "Hey, come on, I'll take you for a tour of the camp," he offered.

Heatkit grinned and dashed over to Nightbird. "Can I, Mama?"

Nightbird frowned a little and glanced cautiously at Tanglefire. Her eyes narrowed and she turned back to Heatkit. "Yes, you may."

Heatkit didn't wonder at his mother's odd behavior. She behaved secretively all the time. The kit did wonder about her, though, but usually kept his thoughts at the back of his mind. He scampered back over to Tanglefire. "I'm ready," he squeaked, kneading his paws in anticipation.

Tanglefire smiled down at him and they exited the den together.

Heatkit looked around himself in awe. "Wow," he breathed. The camp was so big! There were dens lined up around the clearing, each bigger than the last. As the two neared the biggest den, Tanglefire mewed, "This is the warriors' den, it's where all the warriors sleep. The senior warriors and the deputy get to sleep in the middle of the den, where it's warmest. The other warriors have to sleep around the edges, because they haven't earned the right yet to sleep in the middle."

Heatkit gazed up at him. "How do you get to be a senior warrior?" he asked, twitching his whiskers curiously.

Tanglefire sighed. "Well, you have to be very experienced, and you have to have been a warrior for a very long time."

Heatkit nodded. He vowed to be the very best warrior in all of ShadowClan! Nobody would dare fight him, he would be so strong.

He sucked his chest in and strutted around his father. "I will be the best warrior ever!" he squeaked mightily.

Tanglefire nodded and smiled in amusement. "I'm sure you will be," he purred. Still smiling, he led his son forward through the tour.

Later that day, Tanglefire dropped Heatkit off at the nursery. The tiny black tom looked up at him, his eyes shining and little whiskers twitching. "When can I see you again?" he squeaked. "I had so much fun!"

Tanglefire smiled bitterly. He had cherished his time with his only son, but now he had to go. He was joining ForestClan to be with his mate, and he was leaving little Heatkit behind. But he would be taken care of, he was sure of that. "Well, you'll see me around..." he sighed. "Um, but you won't see me at camp anymore."

Heatkit blinked. "Why?" he asked.

Tanglefire hung his head. "I'm sorry, son. But Nightbird isn't your real momma. My mate, Shadefeather, is. She lives in ForestClan and I'm going to join her now. So, good-bye son, good luck with your training, and... I love you."

Heatkit blinked back tears. "B-But, you can't leave me!" he wailed. "If Nightbird isn't my momma, then I wanna be with my real momma! Take me with you!"

Tanglefire shook his head and pushed the kit away. "No. DarkClan is your home, not ForestClan. You must stay here." He turned away, holding back sobs in his chest.

Heatkit stared up at him with wide eyes. "But... papa? ...Papa?" The black kit took a tentative step forward and poked timidly at his father. "Papa, I don't want... please don't leave!"

Tanglefire whipped back to face his son and growled. "I'm not your papa anymore!" he screamed at the kit. "I broke the code by mating with your mother, and now I've been exiled! I can't be in DarkClan anymore! Don't you understand that? And I can't take you with me!" The broad tom dashed out of the camp, his face distorted with pain and loss.

Heatkit stared after him, his eyes brimming with tears. "Papa..." he whimpered and collapsed to the ground.


	3. Chapter 2: Badger Attack

Moons passed and Heatkit grew older. He became an apprentice with his own mentor called Crossclaw. Crossclaw was a white and black-splotched tom with vivid blue eyes. He was a senior warrior, one of the best in the Clan. Heatpaw was very glad to have him as a mentor, as the cat was very experienced in battle and such.

The black apprentice almost thought of him as a father. He never thought much about Tanglefire these days. He couldn't remember his birth father very well, but he knew that whenever he started to think about him, he would start getting shaky and would lose focus. His heart was filled with pure hate for the traitorous tom, the one who loved his mate more than his son. Heatpaw couldn't remember his name, but he knew very well what his scent was, having smelt it several times on border patrols by the ForestClan border.

"Hey, Heatpaw!" cried a voice. Heatpaw turned to face the newcomer and came face to face with his denmate, Crystalpaw.

"Oh hey, Crystalpaw," Heatpaw purred warmly to the pretty white she-cat.

"Hi," she mewed. "Uh, my mentor wanted to know if you could come with us; we're going hunting!"

Heatpaw looked around the camp for his mentor. "Okay, but I need to ask Crossclaw first..."

Crystalpaw hopped up and down. "Oh no, no!" she cried, flustered. "Grasswing already asked your mentor if you would come, and he said yes! So, come on!" The apprentice flicked her tail at him and bounded out the entrance.

The pair ran together through the underbrush and across the leafy ground until they reached a small clearing with a clump of bushes in the middle. Crystalpaw scented the air and pointed the way to where her mentor was waiting. "He's just over there," she murmured. "I think he's planning a mock ambush."

Heatpaw twitched his nose and scanned the trees and foliage surrounding the clearing. His ears swiveled back and forth to catch the tiniest sound, and then he heard it. A small crack announcing the snap of a twig. The black apprentice whirled around to face the direction the sound came from and bared his teeth, his hackles raising up. "I know you're there, Grasswind!" he growled playfully. "Now come on out!"

Another snap of a twig. Nobody answered. Heatpaw's fur began to rise along his nape. Why wasn't Grasswind coming out...? Then there came a deep roar from the forest, and a huge badger galumphed out of the foliage, its bright beady eyes trained on the two apprentices and claws unsheathed, its mouth stretched wide in a ferocious snarl. "C-Crystalpaw!" yelped Heatpaw. "R-R-run!"

Crystalpaw stepped forward with a threatening hiss. "No," she growled. "This badger has encroached on our territory. We must drive it out before it gets to the camp!"

Heatpaw looked sideways at his friend. Her glossy white fur shone brilliantly in the morning sun, and her deep amber eyes held such fierce defiance in them. Heatpaw suddenly felt like rubbing against her and getting her out of harm's way. He stepped forward in front of her and growled deep in his throat. "Stay away," he hissed.

The badger shook its head viciously and lumbered forward, its ears lying flat. It growled as if it was trying to say something in its language.

Heatpaw tilted his head; he couldn't understand badger. This just seemed to anger the badger even more. It roared throatily and lunged for the apprentice. Heatpaw dodged to the side, bumping Crystalpaw out of the way. He dodged the badger's clumsy attack, and latched onto one of its back legs, howling and scratching at the thick fur, but couldn't scratch through to the skin.

The badger bucked and shook its leg to fling him off and Heatpaw lost his grip, landing lightly on his paws before dashing in again to aim a blow at the badger's nose. Blood squirted out and into his face, blinding him, and the badger roared again in fury, flailing its paws blindly. Heatpaw dodged away just in time, but one of the claws scored a nick in his ear. "Foxdung!" he hissed, rubbing a paw at his torn ear. Blood dripped down his face, and he grimaced.

The badger stared threateningly at him, as if daring him to come closer. It growled again as if trying to say something, and its thick fur raised along its hackles. "I have no idea what you're trying to tell me," Heatpaw began menacingly, "but I'm pretty sure it's unimportant!" He gave a flying leap and landed on top of the badger's head, his hindclaws scrabbling against the badger's face.

The huge omnivore grunted and shook him off, batting him away with a great paw. Heatpaw went flying and slammed against a tree, falling to the ground in a heap.

"Heatpaw," Crystalpaw gasped from her seat by the edge of the trees, and dashed forward to his side. "Heatpaw," she whispered as she crouched beside him.

Heatpaw weakly lifted his head. "I'm...fine," he croaked. "Don't worry about me, Crystalpaw."

The white she-cat nodded and whipped around to face the badger. "Stay away from him," she snarled, fluffing out her fur to look bigger.

Heatpaw glanced up at her. "No, don't... Crystalpaw, you'll get hurt!" he trilled in alarm.

Crystalpaw shook her head. "I don't care," she snapped at him. "I don't want you to get hurt..."

Heatpaw stared at her for a few heartbeats, then heaved himself to his paws, panting. "I'll help you," he wheezed, sliding his claws out.

Crystalpaw nodded, her eyes narrowing in concern as she glanced at him.

The badger snarled, its fur fluffing out. It lumbered forward and raised a paw. The apprentices scattered and came together again behind the badger. "I'll go for the eyes, you go on its back," Heatpaw ordered her, leaning in to sniff her scent.

"Okay," she nodded, and nuzzled him lightly. "Good luck," she whispered, and sprang onto the badger as it whipped around.

Heatpaw turned back to the badger, gave a shattering yowl and lunged at the badger's eyes, slashing viciously with both paws. "Get out!" he shrieked. "You are not welcome here!"

The badger batted him away and into a tree. The black apprentice hit his head against the trunk and everything blacked out.

…

"No! Heatpaw! Crystalpaw! Wh-what happened? Um, just stay there, I'll go get help!"

Heatpaw lifted his head blearily and looked in the direction the voice came from. He just vaguely wondered who it was before his head collapsed and everything went black again.

…

"Hey, wake up, Heatpaw, you're okay now. Come on..."

Heatpaw blinked open his eyes and looked up to see Kindlepool standing over him. "...huh?" he mewed. "What happened...where am I?"

The medicine cat kindly smiled. "You're in the medicine den," she explained gently as if speaking to a traumatized kit. "We found you unconscious in the forest and took you back here to be treated."

"Wh-where is Crystalpaw?" he stuttered.

There was a flash of shadow in the medicine cat's eyes and her gaze softened sympathetically. "She is, um, in the other den right now," she said haltingly as if afraid to talk about it.

Heatpaw tried to scramble to his paws, but Kindlepool gently pushed him down. "You must rest," she mewed, emphasizing the 'rest' part. "Please," she added.

The black apprentice begrudgingly lay back down. "When will I be able to see her?" he breathed, his eyes starting to close from exhaustion.

The medicine cat didn't answer as he drifted off to sleep.

…

Heatpaw padded through the dark forest, stepping over stray branches and twigs. _Where am I? _he wondered in bewilderment. The forest was nothing like the forest back home, and he flinched at every scuttle of a rat or flutter of a bird. No matter how fast he tried to run, the scenery always remained the same. Dark foggy trees for miles, no underbrush, only crackly leaves and pine needles underfoot.

"H-Hello? Hello!" he called out, glancing all around him. "Is there any cat here that can show me the way home?"

"Greetings, Heatpaw," came a voice from behind him. He whipped around to see a sleek black and white tom appear out of the mist.

"Who...are you?" Heatpaw stammered fearfully.

"I am Coldheart, young one," the tom purred. "And I know exactly where you are."

"Where?"

"The Dark Forest."

Heatpaw's eyes widened at the name. "B-but, how?" he whined. "I didn't do anything wrong-"

"Hush," Coldheart snapped. "You are here because we need you, Heatpaw. Yes, you are dead, and you were destined for many great things, but this path will turn all that around. You, apprentice, are the next heir to the throne of the Dark Forest. Tigerstar was overthrown many seasons ago by his grandson, Tigerstar, and now we need you to take over that throne. It is your destiny now."

Heatpaw was mesmerized. "My destiny," he repeated.

Coldheart watched him in satisfaction. "Yes, Heatpaw," he purred. "Your destiny."

Something niggled Heatpaw at the back of his mind. It was saying, _No, Heatpaw, don't believe him! He's lying! It's a trick-_

But Heatpaw snapped back at it, _No, I will believe him. This is my _destiny. _I can finally __belong._

The voice was quiet after that but still whispered warnings every now and then.

Heatpaw took a step forward. "I will go with you, then," he meowed.

"No, Heatpaw! Don't!"

Heatpaw snarled at the voice; he thought it was the voice at the back of his mind that had been telling him that Coldheart was a liar, but it wasn't.

The cat strode forward confidently, her blue-gray fur full of stars and light. It was Bluestar. "Heatpaw," she growled. "Come with me. Now."

Coldheart snarled. "Get out of our territory," he hissed. "It is not your place to be here, Bluestar. Your territory is in StarClan, remember?"

Bluestar turned a belittling gaze on him and stepped forward, her haunches rising in fury. "You are one to talk, lying to innocent apprentices, pretending to give them everything they wanted then killing them off, when all they ever wanted was to be loved and to belong! You felt that way too once, young with hope and good promise, but no StarClan cat was there to turn you around when you were offered the chance."

Coldheart's snarl faded and he looked pensive. "Well, I didn't have a choice-," he began but then shook his head and became angry again. "Don't you dare play your stupid mind tricks on me!" he growled. "Besides, what do you want, Bluestar?" he spat.

"Heatpaw does not belong here," the grey leader repeated coldly. "It is not his destiny to die just yet. I have come here to bring him back to his Clan."

Coldheart's eyes narrowed. "Very well... but when it is his turn to die, he shall come back to the Dark Forest. We will make sure of that..." The dark and white warrior faded into the mist and disappeared with his last threat.

Heatpaw looked up at Bluestar, frightened of what had just transpired. "My destiny...?" he mewled.

The ThunderClan leader looked down at him warmly. "You'll find out in due time, little apprentice. Now, let's get you home..."

...

Heatpaw opened his eyes, brought back to the real world from the Dark Forest. A whispery presence swirled about him, warm and comforting. "Thank you, Bluestar," Heatpaw murmured to the former ForestClan leader. The spirit smiled and nodded then disappeared into the wind.

"Heatpaw? Heatpaw, you're awake!" cried a voice from the other side of the medicine den. It was the medicine cat apprentice, Glasspaw. Heatpaw glanced up and smiled wearily.

"Yeah, I am," he mewed.

"Oh, we thought you were going to die!" the light grey she-cat sobbed. "You were in such bad shape!"

Heatpaw tried to move his arm but his whole body felt too sore to even budge. "Ugh, I feel like I'm dying," Heatpaw muttered, "I can't even move!"

"Step back, Glasspaw, you're crowding the patient," came a voice from behind the black apprentice. It was Kindlepool, the medicine cat. She sniffed at Heatpaw's pelt, checking to make sure his injuries were healing. "Well, you'll make a full recovery, but I'm afraid you'll have permanent scars."

Heatpaw nodded, curious about what his injuries were since he couldn't feel anything. "What happened?" he asked instead.

"Uh, well, you had quite a bit of fur ripped out, some flesh-wounds, not too fatal, and external bleeding. That's it." Kindlepool looked like she wanted to say something else, but she looked away, his eyes filling with remorse and sadness.

"What- what about Crystalpaw? Will she be okay?" Heatpaw forced himself to ask.

Kindlepool looked at her paws, at Glasspaw, anywhere but into Heatpaw's eyes. "She...she's gone," she whispered quietly.


End file.
